Quote:
Originally Posted by 13ball
This is an irrelevant dodge.
i agree with you that drug laws are unfairly applied to black people. it doesn't demonstrate systemic racism from the justice system.
i think there are reasonable explanations for why the drug laws are unfairly applied to black people that don't include race.
one explanation is that they're more often applied to poor people in general, white or black. more of them get swept up as poor areas are policed more often due to high crime. poor people get pulled over more often for busted up car/expired registration and then get caught with weed in the car. much larger number of these poor people happen to be black.
another explanation is that cops often pursue harsh sentences against drug offenders with gang associations. example, they catch a guy with a clean record but based on the crew he's hanging around with they get the vibe that he's not a great guy. they choose to arrest him and pursue a harsh sentence, thinking he will probably be involved with something worse down the road. this could be true whether the offender is white or black.
both of these scenarios describe the same action and aren't motivated by race.